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A 26-year-old Australian died after hitting the mountainside during a wingsuit jump in the Valais Alps, cantonal police said on Wednesday.

The man, whose name was not released, was killed on Tuesday in a rugged mountain area, Valais police said in a statement.

He and another individual jumped from an area 20 metres below the summit of the 2,243-metre-high Croix de Fer peak at around 5pm, according to the statement.

The Australian went off track right after his jump, and hit the rock face some 300 metres lower down the mountain, police said.

Rescuers pronounced him dead at the scene.

The Swiss Alps are a magnet for wingsuit divers, who wear special jumpsuits that add surface area to the body, enabling them to glide like a bird, before opening a parachute like a regular skydiver.

Some 20 people are killed each year taking part in the extreme sport.

British wingsuit diver and stuntman Mark Sutton — best known for parachuting into the London 2012 Olympics opening ceremony dressed as James Bond — died in August 2013 when he crashed into a mountain ridge in Valais after jumping from a helicopter.